In semiconductor power devices it is important for the conduction resistance to be minimized within a semiconductor device housing and for the current density to be distributed as uniformly as possible between corresponding connection elements. Nevertheless, it is not straightforwardly possible to achieve a homogeneous current distribution. Rather, complicated measures are necessary, for example in the case of the described connection element comprising a plurality of bonding wire portions, to combine the latter to form a large-area common bonding strip such that the bonding strip, via the connection elements, leads the high current flow to an external flat conductor or an external terminal of the high-power device. Currently, use is made of appropriately thick aluminum wires having a diameter of greater than 100 μm for controlling the high currents in order to allow currents of greater than 5 A to flow via corresponding connection elements.
For this purpose, a plurality of bonding wires can be applied to the active structures of a semiconductor power chip, above which the corresponding transistor circuits are situated. In this case, both a vertical current flow and a lateral current flow are crucial for the total connection resistance or the package resistance on the top side of the semiconductor chip in the case of aluminum bonding wire portions of this type. When there are large-area connection areas there is a problem with regard to the lateral current flow, which forms a limiting factor for the connection element, since the current-carrying capacity is limited by the thin metallization layer forming the connection area. The vertical component forms a lesser problem, since the thickness of the aluminum bonding wire is crucial here.
However, increasing the thickness of the metallization in the region of the connection area means that manufacturing is made more expensive for semiconductor production, the area of contact between the aluminum bonding wire and the connection area still not being enlarged, so that the areal limitation in the lateral direction still occurs at this point.